THE TEMPLE ORCHESTRA

THE SWEET WIND of the songs of Zion, the melodies of the temple orchestra, blows down through the leaves of the Bible. It tells of righteous kings and Levite chieftains inditing sacred psalmody under the impulse of the divine spirit, of directors of music and cantors, of priestly trumpets, countless harps and innumerable Levites lifting their voice in exultant song in the courtyards of the holy ark and the ever-burning menorah.

But, in reality, what was the Temple Orchestra of ancient Israel really like, and how did it function?

There were instruments, of course. There were two kinds of stringed instruments. The harp and lyre, as everyone knows. But what was the difference between them? Then there were two kinds of woodwind instruments, the halil and abuv. But, again, what was the difference between them? Then there were two kinds of “brass” instruments, the shofar and hatsotserah. But they were totally different too, and played in different numbers. There was also a range of percussion instruments. Two different kinds of cymbals, tsilts’lei terua and tsilts’lei shama, both quite different of course. And there were drums, sistrums, bells and even….an organ. Yep. And where did they keep all these instruments? And who played them, by the way?

What about the singers? Did they sing only in unison or was there harmony? Did they sing solo or was it all choral? Was it only adults or were there children too? How many men sang before the holy throne for the twice-daily offering? Where did they stand to sing, or did they have more than one location for singing? How often did each singer sing every year? How were they chosen? How did the guild of Temple Singers regulate and discipline itself? And how did they get on with the kohanim, the temple ‘priests’?

If you want to know more about these topics, you’ll find it in Chapters 8, 9, and 10 of The Songs of Ascents.